On the first play of the game Saturday, Jordan Ta’amu hit D.K. Metcalf for a 75-yard touchdown, and I thought, “wow, Ole Miss might upset ‘Bama again with a start like this.”
Boy, was I wrong. Alabama went on to score 62 straight points and didn’t give up another point to one of the most explosive offenses in the Southeastern Conference. It’s almost scary to think about how good Alabama is this year, but what’s even more terrifying is there’s no end in sight until Nick Saban is gone.
So, when does he leave? Well, ESPN’s Chris Low asked him about it this summer and he responded with, “That’s what everybody keeps saying, that I’m not going to be doing this for much longer, and all the people who say it have no idea what I’m going to do.”
Saban is 66 years old, years beyond some of his biggest competitors; Kirby Smart (42) and Lincoln Riley (34). Do we truly appreciate what we are witnessing, though? I don’t think so. Let’s dive deeper into the numbers.
Saban is 130 – 20 at Alabama and 72 – 13 in conference. Six of those 20 losses came in the first year he took over Alabama in 2007. He’s won five championships in Tuscaloosa and played in six. He’s only been Associated Press Coach of the Year twice, and that might speak more to his greatness than anything. It’s like the AP is saying, he recruits so well, he SHOULD win 86% of his games in the hardest conference in college football.
Saban also continues his recruiting and winning ways, no matter who’s on his staff. He loses a couple of coaches every year and it’s seldom because they did a bad job, but assumed the reigns as head coach somewhere else.
| Bobby Williams | Michigan State | Jim McElwain | Colo St / Florida |
| Mark Dantonio | Cincy / Michigan State | Dan Quinn | Atlanta Falcons |
| Derek Dooley | La Tech / Tennessee | Adam Gase | Miami Dolphins |
| Jimbo Fisher | Florida St / Texas A&M | Kirby Smart | Georgia |
| Lane Kiffin | Oak (NFL) / UT / USC / FAU | Major Applewhite | Houston Univ |
| Mike Haywood | Miami OH / Texas Southern | Mario Cristobal | Oregon |
| Jason Garrett | Dallas Cowboys | Jeremy Pruitt | Tennessee |
| Will Muschamp | Florida / South Carolina | Billy Napier | Louisiana-Lafayette |
So, every one of those schools and teams are essentially saying they want their coach to be modeled after Nick Saban. His team’s discipline is outrageous. It was even discovered this year he sent his players to a Michigan State sports psychologist who helps players buy into what Saban coaches.
Now, let’s take a look at recruiting. According to Rivals.com, Alabama has finished first overall every year since 2013 when they finished second. How does Saban do that? Simple. He gets you to the NFL better than any other coach. Alabama leads the nation in active NFL players with 44 players, with LSU and Florida following.
What else can Saban do? Well, the only thing he has left is to pass Bear Bryant with his seventh championship ring, and that looks like it’s going to happen this year.
